Are we contenders in 2012?

[bodgie]

I agree White will be headed for the chop but he is a player who has suffered from our no forwards policy. When he gets a game it is primarily as a back up ruckman rotating to the bench and forward. He will only be effective given a good run of games to develop a unit along with Reid, TDL and whoever with the mids coming through. Our backs and mids get regular faith and time to develop and operate as a team. TDL as a sub was miserably disheartening before the game began.

If the coaches and the game in general means a distinct forward line plan is extinct then our options are few. Maybe the cycle will turn.

[Hartijon]

I agree, we were crap generally all over the ground last week...but IMO , from watching this season unfold....we have a crap, hopscotch, patchwork forwardline... particually without Goodes there...
And until that's rectified, we can't claim to be serious contenders.

Agree and it reinforces my previous point.Sure we were crap everywhere but to be serious contenders (what this thread is about) we need a forward line.Bazza would have lead and screamed for the ball ,gone to the centre to get a kick and at least been a target.I think it was Mattner who twice had absolutely no one to kick to. That dents the backlines confidence and leads to short plays. TDL is a natural forward who leads and presents therefore as a target. I sympathise with our besieged backline who if they do get free have nowhere to go. Have a few forwards who get free,kick goals against the run of play and the whole momentum can change. Scoreboard pressure is the best forward pressure and watch a team surge after they get a few goals! All of a sudden the mids come alive,we have pace and run and the rest of the forward line starts to lead.Kicking more goals than the opposition is also how you win a game

[desredandwhite]

Aaaaaand the answer is... "not really". I just got sucked in by one good win against Hawthorn!

I expect we will win enough games at home to sneak into the 8, maybe challenge for the 6.

I always felt this year was too early for us - the young guns that were killing it in the early rounds aren't all firing together at the moment - AJ, Parko, Hanners, Sammy etc etc. That's to be expected, they're just kids. There's plenty of improvement to come, which is great - but we won't be consistent enough to seriously challenge this year.

This is getting ridiculous. I get sucked in by a couple of 20+ point losses against Richmond and St Kilda, and the team goes undefeated after that to make me look stupid AND indecisive.

Reassess after Collingwood game.

[Xie Shan]

^^ That's OK, it happens to the best of us from time to time! It's a tough gig, trying to predict what's going to happen in the future. Football commentators are a bit like stock market analysts in that they are trying to make sense out of something that's inherently uncertain, and will come up with all kinds of theories / reasons as to why team X will win the flag, or where the All Ords will be in 6 months' time...

Anyway, the belief in this group seems to be sky high at the moment and after a win like today's they would rightly be thinking that they can beat anyone, and I would agree with that! They have answered every challenge so far, Sam Reid being in good form has made a huge difference. Still, we do have a very tough run home finishing up with Geelong in Geelong so are no certainties to even finish in the top 4. I think by the time we play Collingwood (who I still think are the team to beat this year) things will be a lot clearer.